. >> irene last year didn't even look like this after it hit. >> forecasters say they expect the storm will pound a wide area for several days. and with just nine days to go before the u.s. presidential election, the hurricane is altering the schedule and strategies of the two main candidates. president barack obama was set to campaign in three key states on monday, but he cut his trip short and returned to washington to monitor the storm. in 2005 obama's predecessor george w. bush was harshly criticized for his slow response to hurricane katrina. the storm devastated the south of the united states including the city of new orleans. republican campaign evented eeds in the s of virginia on sunday. both campaigns are concerned about the negative impact of early voting. ballots cast ahead of the election account for 30% of the total. we now go to sayaka mori who's been following this storm for us. >> yes, catherine. sandy is quite a massive storm. clouds are blanketing eastern portions of the u.s. into eastern canada. we have lots of reports of flooding as well as strong winds. now things